


The Wolf Wand

by Alley_Walk (AlleyWalk_writes)



Series: The Grim Adventures of Romulus and Remus [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Friendship, Gen, Marauders Era (Harry Potter), POV Remus Lupin, POV Werewolf Remus, Trans Remus Lupin, Wand Shopping, Werewolves Turn Into Actual Wolves, Witness Protection, Wolfstar is endgame
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-14
Updated: 2020-09-14
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:54:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26460742
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlleyWalk_writes/pseuds/Alley_Walk
Summary: ""Remus… uhm, Remus Longmire." Remus said, trying not to wince. He absolutely abhorred his fake identity that'd been given to him by the Ministry, even though the name was a good deal less embarrassing than 'Remus Lupin'.But even for his own safety, he still couldn't help but think it a betrayal.Swallowing thickly, Remus said, "I'd be pleased if you'd call me Romulus, though. 'Remus' is… more of a nickname.""Or: A few days after the full moon, Remus, under the dubious protection of Moody in the Ministry's Witness Protection Program, goes to buy his school things and has a run-in with Sirius Black.
Relationships: Remus Lupin & Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody, Sirius Black & Remus Lupin
Series: The Grim Adventures of Romulus and Remus [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1923598
Comments: 1
Kudos: 11





	The Wolf Wand

**1st Year: The Wolf Wand**

Friday, August 20th, 1971

“All set, Lupin?” Moody asked. He was standing framed in the doorway looking down at Remus, his suspicious blue eyes pinning him to the cot all the way across the room. Remus swallowed and gave a curt nod, and Moody stepped out, closing and locking the door, the slam of the heavy iron bolt a reassuring sound to Remus's ears.

Remus felt the moon’s pull deep in his bones, the buzz of silver deep beneath the floorboards making his teeth ache. He quickly undressed and folded his clothes neatly atop the scratchy bedspread; it would be a shame to ruin them. They were some of the nicest things Remus had any memory of owning. 

As he stood in the center of the empty room he felt as the wolf rose to the fore inside him. He held back a scream as his jaw stretched into a wolf-like snout, his mouth aching as his teeth curved and sharpened. Pain knifed down his back as his spine elongated, agony pulsing through his veins as claws sprouted from his fingernails, flesh and bone molding into a new shape as dark auburn fur spread across his body like a wave. 

Beast stood up on all four legs, panting with the effort of the shift. He lay down on the floor to calm his racing heart, the hum of the silver beneath him making him whine and pin his ears back against his head. Restless, he soon began to prowl the lengths of his confinement. He was hungry, but there was nothing to eat. 

He could smell prey outside of his cage, warm, juicy meat that stood outside the door a little ways away. His mouth watered. He became hungry and he began to pace, clawing and howling at the walls.

After a few hours of this the hunger became agonizing. Stomach aching with hunger, Beast gave in and bit down on his foreleg, fangs sinking deep into his flesh as the welcomed iron taste of blood reached his tongue.

He ripped and worried at the flesh, uncaring of the damage. Beast knew his jailer would get nothing but a new scar from the experience. Whatever it was his jailer and his pack did to remove the damage happened quickly enough for it not to be a concern.

After destroying everything in the room that wasn't tied down, Beast curled up in a corner and slumbered until sunrise. 

As the sun rose, Beast receded.

* * *

Wednesday, August 25th, 1971

Remus bit back a sigh as he saw two other customers inside Olivander's. He did not feel up to socializing right now, but he supposed he would have to make due. Moody's hand on his shoulder urged him on, pushing him inside. 

The bell tinkled merrily overhead as they entered, and the boy currently holding a wand aloft looked over for a moment. He had sharp storm grey eyes and thick locks of curly black hair that hung around his face, with the sharply cut robes that spoke that of someone more purely-bred than Remus was accustomed to. He smelled of sulfur and smoke, which gave Remus the oddest feeling of familiarity. 

The boy currently wore a petulant scowl on his face, and flung the wand in his hand away before the wispy old man in front of him could even grasp it. An older girl, obviously a relative by their similar coloring, stood next to him, her eyes bright with merriment as she helped Olivander pick up the wand and put it on a stack of them nearby. 

"Are they buying  _ all _ of those?" Remus asked Moody in an undertone.

Moody, who had been doing a silent and faux-casual sweep of the room, grunted. "Tricky wand, that's all."

Remus blinked, then gave him a mildly pleasant smile and nodded his head.

He had no idea what that was. What did it mean? What if his wand  _ was _ tricky, just like the other boy's? He certainly seemed upset about it. 

Moody had gotten Olivander's attention, and as the small man approached him Remus couldn't help but think he was being examined, and found wanting. "Which is your dominant hand?"

"My left," Remus answered. 

After a whirl of measuring things that Remus thought ought not to be measured, Remus was handed his first wand and hesitantly gave it a wave. Olivander immediately snatched it back, muttering to himself as he took the other boy's as well.

The dark haired boy grinned at him, and Remus gave him a hesitant smile. 

"Sirius Black." Sirius said, with a quicksilver grin.

"Remus… uhm, Remus Longmire." Remus said, trying not to wince. He absolutely abhorred his fake identity that'd been given to him by the Ministry, even though the name was a good deal less embarrassing than 'Remus Lupin'.

But even for his own safety, he still couldn't help but think it a betrayal.

Swallowing thickly, Remus said, "I'd be pleased if you'd call me Romulus, though. 'Remus' is… more of a nickname."

Sirius looked thoughtful for a moment. His eyes danced mischievously. "I dunno. If it's something you don't want me to do, I think I'm inclined to do it even more." 

He grasped the next candidate Olivander handed him and then jolted as if struck by lightning, bright red and gold sparks flowing fluidly from the tip of his wand. 

Remus gasped. He’d finally done it. Hopefully it wouldn’t take him too long, either.

“12½ length, ebony and dragon heartstring.” Olivander said. "Very bendy." He looked down at Sirius, his smudged glasses slipping down his nose. "A very curious combination."

"Thanks," Sirius said absently, turning his black ebony wand over and over in his hand. Remus rubbed his head, feeling a headache coming on; his teeth ached. He must have been unconsciously grinding them in his sleep last night. 

“Thank you for your time, Olivander.” The young witch said, dropping the appropriate amount of coins into his hand plus a little extra, “for the trouble my errant cousin has caused.” She said with a merry smile.

“Oi!” Sirius objected.

She gave him a smile. “Come along, Siri.”

Sirius crossed his arms stubbornly across his chest. “I want to stay with Remus to see which wand he gets.”

Remus looked over at him, surprised and pleased. Moody cut in, “That’s not necessary.”

However the young witch looked down at Remus with a bemused smile, and Remus couldn’t help but touch the scars on his face self-consciously, ducking his head shyly. He heard her chuckle. “I don’t see why not.” She said. “Oh, how delightfully rude of me. I’m Andromeda, and this is my cousin Sirius.” She examined Moody’s face, or perhaps, his facial structure. “Though I’m sure you’ve heard of us, being Purebloods yourselves.”

Moody's facial structure was indeed that of an aristocrat, with high cheekbones and chiseled features, along with short auburn hair and brown hazel eyes hidden behind wireframe glasses that took on a faint emerald tone in the airy light of the shop. Remus looked about the same, sans glasses and with additional baby fat to allow for his age. Moody had insisted he wear his hair long, to give himself a different silhouette. He didn't particularly mind, but he kept most of it out of the way, in a short ponytail, the shorter strands escaping to halo around his face and head. Their remarkably similar appearances were the result of vaguely illegal and semi-permanent Transfiguration magic. Remus's appearance would need to be altered every year to properly show that he was growing as a child should be; Remus already had plans to be the tallest boy in his year. 

Moody dipped his head as graciously as his manner would allow him. “Alastor Longmire. This is my nephew, Romulus Longmire.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, my lady.” Remus said. Olivander handed him a wand. He waved it, and a nearby lamp exploded in a shower of sparks.

Sirius’s nose wrinkled. “Leave that shite for the stuffy Pureblood parties.” 

Remus gave him a mild smile. “Such things can be tiring, I suppose.”

Sirius linked an arm through his with a conspiratorial grin. “I think we’ll get along just fine,  _ Remus _ .” Remus’s head began to pound, his stomach roiling as his teeth began to admit a familiar buzz. His eyes landed on the wand in Sirius’s hand. The wand handle was a varnished silver. He grit his teeth.

“I don’t think I’ve heard the name ‘Longmire’ before,” Andromeda commented.

“From America,” Moody grunted, eyes tracking Olivander as he made his way about the room. Andromeda looked at him, amused.

“Hmm, I wonder… Yes, how about… here. 10¼ length, cypress.” Olivander said, holding out the wand. Remus reached for it, casually untangling himself from Sirius in the process.

“And the core?” Moody asked.

“Antimony.” Olivander said, just as Remus’s fingers enveloped the wand. Alarm jolted through him at the term. 

_ “Now remember, Remus. Silver isn’t just silver.” Lyall said, shaking a finger remonsteratively at him, a playful glint in his eye. He took up his fork and speared the bleeding red meat on his plate, taking a huge bite, gold eyes gleaming with pleasure. _

_ Hope nodded her head, her eyes sharp and hard on her husband’s form. “Oh, yes. Sulfur, arsenic, and antimony. And that’s just to name a few.” _

Remus blinked himself out of the memory as a small, pleasant warmth bloomed inside his chest and reached down his arm, coruscating sparks flying from his wand and dispersing into the air like glitter.

“Woah, nice one!” Sirius said, clapping him on the shoulder. Remus flinched away, swallowing down several unpleasant memories as he examined his new wand, feeling slightly befuddled. It had a light purple gleam to it that Remus found pleasing to the eye; the only thing he wasn’t completely happy with was the handle, the silver color gave him a rather uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach.

When Olivander looked at him again, he felt as if he had been picked apart and examined and quite thoroughly seen through. The man said nothing about any suspicions, however, if he indeed had any.

Moody passed over fourteen galleons, Remus’s keen eyes catching a slip of paper passed between the two in the exchange. Olivander stepped to the back of the store to put the money away, and a few minutes later came back bearing a wand holster for Remus.

“Here you are, good sir’s. Thank you and happy hunting!” He said, with a wink at Remus.

“You lot know what he meant?” Sirius asked, curious. They stepped back into the cheery cobbled streets of Diagon Alley, an old house elf following a darkly scowling wizard as well as several laughing women going from the other direction passing them by.

“No,” Remus said, though of course he did, though he doubted the old wand maker knew the exact import of those words.

Remus had a family to find, and they were in the hands of one Fenrir Greyback. 


End file.
